Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

Cricket Australia has overshot its COVID-19 bio-bubble budget. The budget now stands whopping 30 million Australian dollars. It includes a marquee tour of India and the Big Bash League being a part of it. This decision comes due to the desperation to save its multi-million dollar broadcast deal with Channel Seven.

India has to tour Australia at the end of this year for a four-Test series.

“Cricket Australia’s bio-security budget for the summer has ballooned past AUD 30 million as the governing body seeks to protect its broadcast rights with stringent protocols amid a spectacular breakdown in relations with Seven West Media,” the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

“Channel Seven’s threat to walk away from the game has heightened CA’s determination to safeguard the season against an infection in an international or Big Bash League bubble, the result of which could be a loss of content and a disastrous breach of television contracts,” the report stated.

CA’s former CEO Kevin Roberts in May projected a bio-bubble budget of AUD 10 million. The cost has increased three-fold after a second wave of coronavirus infections hit the country. The state of Victoria is the worst affected.

“…it has emerged costs have reached three times that amount since the second wave of the virus, with the bill covering everything from charter flights to booking out whole sections of hotels and the purchase of COVID-19 test kits themselves,” the report further stated.

CA had to lay off majority of its staff to cut costs. Thus, the Australian summer with India’s tour is very important for it in terms of sever financial crisis.

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